Odisha government sets up a five-member committee on proposed Legislative Council

BHUBANESWAR: As part of its efforts to establish a Legislative Council in the state, Odisha government today set up a five-member committee to study the nature of such Vidhan Parishads in other states.

The decision in this regard was taken at a meeting which was chaired by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Bikram Keshari Arukh and attended by the secretary of the Odisha Legislative Assembly and the secretary of parliamentary affairs department.

"The proposal to set up a Vidhan Parishad in Odisha is at a preliminary stage. Today's meeting resolved to set up a five-member committee which will visit different states having such provisions," Arukh told reporters here.

The minister said the committee was expected to submit its report with the state government by the end of this month.

Replying to a question, Arukh said the state government initiated the exercise to set up a Legislative Council in Odisha after considering demands made by different organisations.

There are Legislative Councils in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh.

The Union Cabinet has recently cleared a proposal of setting up a Legislative Council of Assam.